On HARRISON: articles—

Bradshaw, J., "Oozing Charm from Every Pore," in
Esquire
(New York), July 1972.

Ecran
(Paris), November 1979.

Current Biography 1986
, New York, 1986.

Obituary in
Variety
(New York), 6 June 1990.

Ferguson, K., obituary in
Film Monthly
(Berkhamsted, England), August 1990.

* * *

Although Rex Harrison was such a commanding presence on screen, and seemed
to have been a star for an incalculable number of years, in reality he did
not make his mark until the 1940s. Given co-starring or featured roles in
British films of the 1930s, Harrison always appeared to be overshadowed or
out-acted by his colleagues, particularly Vivien Leigh in
Storm in a Teacup
and
St. Martin's Lane
, two films that should have helped the actor's career. As the King
in
Anna and the King of Siam
, and as the jealous symphony conductor in
Unfaithfully Yours
, Harrison at last gained a substantial audience, but gossip concerning
the suicide of Carole Landis, with whom he had had an affair, effectively
ended his first Hollywood career.

This tragedy, rather than hurting Harrison, helped in the long run, for it
allowed him to refine his acting on stage, and to recreate the image of
the suave, urbane Englishman suggested by some of the actor's early
films, such as
Blithe Spirit
and
The Rake's Progress
, but never fully developed. Harrison's portrayal of Professor
Henry Higgins in
My Fair Lady
, of course, epitomized the new characterization, and it was further
developed in
The Yellow Rolls-Royce
. Nevertheless, one should not categorize Harrison.
Cleopatra
gave him, out of everyone in the cast, an opportunity to dominate the
scene as Caesar, and to rise above the banal script and production (and
his first Oscar nomination). Yet again, in
The Agony and the Ecstasy
, as Pope Julius II, he was able to overcome the poor production, while
Staircase
presented him with a rare opportunity for "camp" comedy.

Following
Staircase
until his death in 1990, Harrison appearing only infrequently in films
and only in supporting roles, including two swashbuckling failures,
Behind the Iron Mask
and
Crossed Swords
. He found more success on the stage in this period, however, including
another go at Caesar in George Bernard Shaw's
Caesar and Cleopatra
, touring revivals of
My Fair Lady
, and up to a month before his death a lead role on Broadway in W.
Somerset Maugham's
The Circle
. Over a 65-year career, Harrison had established himself as a top-notch
performer of sophisticated roles on stage and on screen, and had secured a
permanent place in the film pantheon as Professor Henry Higgins.

—Anthony Slide, updated by David E. Salamie

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